AN EYE OPENER—ITALIAN CULTURE

Italian culture is steeped in the arts , family , architecture , music and food. Home of the Roman Empire and a major center of Renaissance. The Italian culture has flourished for centuries but briefly i will like to reveal some interesting things to you about Italian customs and traditions ;

About 90 percent of the population of Italy is italian , although there are many other ethnicities that lives in italy. Ethnicities like North African Arab , Italo-Albanian , Albanian , German , Austrian and some other European groups. The Bordering countries of France , Switzerland , Austria and Slovenia to the north have influenced Italian culture as the mediterranean islands of Sardenia and Sicily. The official language is italian , about 98 percent of the population speaks italian as native language. But not to forget they are dialets for each of the provinces and regions like Sardinian ,Ligurian ,Neapolitan , Sicilian , Piedmontese , Calabrian etc . Milanese is also spoken in Milan.

Family is an extremely important value within the italian culture. They frequently have family gatherings and enjoy spending time together. Children are reared to remain close to the family upon adulthood and incorporate their future family into larger network. The major religion in italy is Roman Catholicism , where Vatican city located in the heart of Rome as the hub of Roman Catholicism . The Pope resides in the Apostolic Palace there in Vatican City. About 90 percent of the population are catholics while the other 10 percent comprises of Protestants , Jewish and a growing muslim immigrant community.

Architwctural styles including classical Roman , Renaissance , Baroque and Neoclassical has its origination in Italy. This is the home of some of the most famous structures in the world like Colosseum and The Leaning Tower of Pisa . The concept of a basilica which was originally used to describe an open public court building and evolved to mean a Catholic Pilgrimage site- was born in Italy. Basilica is derived from Latin language which means Royal Palace. Florence , Venice and Rome are known for many museum sitings but Artcan be viewed in churches and public buildings. Amongst this the most notable is the Ceiling of the SistineChapel of the Vatican , painted by Michelangelo between 1508-1512 .

Opera has its roots in Italy and many famous operas including ”Aida and La Traviata ” both by Giuseppe Verdi and Pagliacci by RuggeroLeoncavallo were written in Italian and are still performed in the native language. Recently , Italian tenor Luciano Pavarottimade opera more accesssible to the masses as part of the Three tenors. The home to renowned fashion houses , the best in the world in terms of designs like Armani , Gucci , Benetton , Versace , Prada , Dolce e Gabbana etc. The meal is actually divided into Appetizer , first course , second course and main meal then after comes digestive. These are the basic things about Italian community .